“How do I get her to stop jumping on guests?” This is a common question from dog owners, and one I was asked at least once, if not more, in 2018.

The first step is prevention. A new habit is very hard to establish if the old one is still being fed. To permanently stop your dog jumping, you must initially prevent him from jumping.There are several ways to accomplish this and get the training started:

Hold him on-leash at distance from the guests. Remember to protect his neck by clipping the leash to a body harness and not a collar.

Put him behind a baby gate or in an ex-pen.

Crate him with a yummy Kong or safe chew.

Prevention is a pause button: the behavior isn’t getting any worse (by repeated jumping) or any better (by systematically training good behavior). Prevention is always a necessary step for changing behavior because it keeps your dog’s new, fledgling habits from being overcome by the old ones.

Some folks get anxious thinking this is the only answer for jumping. Don’t worry! Prevention is vital, but it doesn’t end there. Stay tuned for Part 2 where we talk about training the appropriate alternative behavior!